The myths surrounding the revalidation process should be dispelled, Dr Katerina Kolyva, director of continuing practice at the NMC, has said.
Dr Kolyva made the comments at the QNI’s Annual Conference on 28 September. She said that revalidation is ‘not something which is being imposed by employers, not something which is being imposed by the NMC.’ Rather, she said, ownership of the process was in the hands of nurses and midwives, who should view it as an ‘innovation towards professionalism’ as opposed to a time consuming bureaucratic exercise.
Dr Kolyva said: ‘This is a process where we celebrate professionalism, not looking to root out the next nurse or midwife to be removed from the register. We must all focus on improvement.'
She also spoke about the role of the confirmer, which some nurses and midwives have said was unclear. Dr Kolyva clarified that a confirmer cannot block a registrant’s revalidation, saying that ‘only two people can remove a nurse or midwife from the NMC register: the person themselves or the NMC’s registrar.’
A nurse who had been involved in the pilot process of revalidation stated that while the process may seem daunting initially, it can be enjoyable and a great opportunity for nurses and midwives. She said: ‘After getting over the initial collection of evidence, my colleagues and I found the process enjoyable. It also allowed us to demonstrate the work we do, and any innovations we have come up with.’
However, another member of the audience raised the point that a lack of information ‘confuses a huge majority of nurses.’ Dr Kolyva responded by saying that the NMC had a full communication plan which will be launched in November once the NMC’s council has made its decision to launch revalidation in October.